


You Are Cordially Invited

by hollyand



Category: Dragon Age (Video Games), Dragon Age - All Media Types, Dragon Age II
Genre: Alternate Universe - British, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Background Carver/Merrill, Fake/Pretend Relationship, Friends to Lovers, M/M, Sharing a Bed, Weddings
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-06-04
Updated: 2017-06-04
Packaged: 2018-11-08 20:10:57
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,710
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11089041
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/hollyand/pseuds/hollyand
Summary: Modern!AU. Anders gets asked by his good friend Garrett Hawke to be Hawke’s date at Carver’s wedding. Despite the unrequited crush Anders has had on Hawke for the past three years, he makes the fateful decision to go.Written for the Handerslympics 2017.





	You Are Cordially Invited

**Author's Note:**

> Team AU Handerslympics prompt: 
> 
> **VI. The Lovers**
> 
> Key Words: Choice. _Upright position:_ making decisions, higher mind, responsibility, honesty, union.  
>  _Reversed:_ indecision, irresponsibility, dishonesty, infidelity. 
> 
> I chose the upright version for this fic. 
> 
> \-----------

**Garrett:** _Hey Anders. I want to ask you for a favour, if that’s OK?_

 

It had started off with such an innocuous text message. Anders half-chuckled to himself; Garrett Hawke was a good friend of his, and asking him for a favour was nothing out of the ordinary. Smiling to himself, Anders had replied as quick as he could.

**Anders:** _Of course you can, Hawke. What can I do for you?_

 

And then it came. The message that made Anders freeze.

**Garrett:** _My brother’s getting married this Saturday. I’ve got no one to go with._

 **Garrett:** _I don’t want to go to a wedding on my own. Would it be OK if you came with me?_

 

Anders felt his heart leap into his mouth. This could not be happening, he told himself, this could not be happening…

 

 **Anders:** _Hawke, are you asking me to be your *date*? For Carver’s wedding?_

 **Garrett:** _If that’s OK with you? I mean, you don’t have to say yes. And it obviously isn’t a real date, although we can pretend we’re dating. And we’re both single, so we won’t be upsetting any partners. I just… really don’t want to go to this wedding on my own. Please?_

 

Well, that was probably understandable, Anders tried to tell himself. Garrett himself had finally broken up with his on-off fiancé about four months ago, and Anders knew that Carver and Merrill had invited Hawke’s plus-one to their wedding before Hawke’s split.

But it was still awkward.

Anders and Garrett had been friends for three years. They’d bonded when Garrett had taken his dog in to the vet clinic Anders worked at; despite the fact that Anders was firmly a cat person, Garrett’s dog had taken a firm liking to him – so much so that Garrett felt he _had_ to keep in touch.

The attraction had been instant. Hawke was so very much his type, with his carefully arranged smart dark hair, his neatly trimmed beard, and his soulful amber eyes that turned Anders’s knees to jelly every time he looked at them; an open, handsome face atop a broad, tanned, muscular body that starkly contrasted Anders’s own tall, thin, pale frame and had been the subject of a million fantasies that Anders would never, ever, ever dare tell his friend.

And then Anders had blown it. Hawke had flirted, badly, clumsily, charmingly; and Anders had blushed and _pushed it all away_ because he surely didn’t deserve someone as wonderful and handsome and smart as Garrett Malcolm Hawke; the man who could light up a room and was at ease and well-liked wherever he went. True, Hawke was a flirt, was the type to charm anyone into anything, yet Anders kept him emotionally at arm’s length – whether Hawke was serious or not, he just couldn’t inflict himself on someone as perfect as Garrett Hawke.

When Hawke had announced he had a boyfriend, Anders had been devastated. And he told himself it was for the best.

They’d remained friends, but every reminder of Hawke’s relationship was like a knife to the heart. Hawke had several, none of them lasted, and even the on-off fiancé was a man he’d proposed to after only a month; and Anders tried to ignore it all and bury himself in his work. It was for the best. It had to be for the best.

And now, here he was, being asked to be Hawke’s plus-one pretend date for the wedding.

It would be so easy to turn Hawke down, to push him away. It was what Anders had done these past three years. But what kind of friend would he be if he let Hawke down when Hawke needed help?

It wasn’t the biggest favour after all. He would turn up for the wedding, enjoy the day, perhaps even enjoy the free food and wine, and then he and Hawke would go back to their lives as before. No harm done.

Anders picked up his phone to text him back.

 _OK_ , he typed. _I’ll do it_. He pressed ‘send’.

 

***

 

 _You are cordially invited to the wedding of Carver Hawke and Merrill Alerion_ , read the silver calligraphy engraved on the invitation. It was a smart, thick white card addressed to ‘Garrett Hawke plus one,’ and Anders noted, with some curiosity, that the name of Hawke’s fiancé was not included at all on the invitation – almost as if the happy couple had expected this turn of events; or tried to allow for its possibility.

‘This is a very fancy invitation,’ Anders observed, turning it over and over in his hand; the drive to Wales had been a long one, and he’d had plenty of time to inspect the wedding invitation Hawke had handed him before they set out. ‘I didn’t think your brother went for that sort of thing.’

Garrett laughed; he kept his gaze firmly on the road as he drove, but Anders could see the light dancing in his eyes, as if being outside the city gave him some great joy that he was keeping secret from his companion. ‘I suspect either my mother or Merrill had something to do with it,’ he answered breezily; perhaps it was the countryside air that agreed with him, Anders thought. ‘Come to think of it, it’s more likely the former than the latter.’

‘Where are we going anyway?’ Anders turned his eyes back onto the winding country road in front of them, walled either side by impenetrable green hedges; somehow it felt less dazzling than looking at Hawke.

‘To our hotel. Merrill grew up in the countryside and wanted to get married in the little village she came from. It has a lovely historic church, I understand – about a thousand years old, I think – anyway, our hotel isn’t in the village itself; it’s a short drive away as the village is far too small for a hotel.’

‘Fair enough,’ Anders replied. ‘I take it we’re driving to the village tomorrow?’

‘Of course we are. I’ll need to get to the church a little early, as I’m best man, and you can come with me then.’ Hawke flashed him a wicked grin. ‘You haven’t seen me in my suit. I look _so_ smart.’

Anders coloured, and said nothing.

‘I wonder what you look like in a suit,’ Hawke started, curiosity in his voice now. ‘It’s just occurred to me that I’ve never seen you in one.’

Anders allowed himself a chuckle. ‘Well,’ he said, trying to keep his voice light, ‘I guess we’ll all find out tomorrow, won’t we?’

‘I suppose we will,’ Hawke replied, as he car turned the corner of the hotel car park, and Anders breathed a sigh at being here at last. Hawke parked the car and got out, and Anders dawdled behind him, fidgeting with his own luggage as Hawke wheeled his confidently into the hotel lobby.

When Anders caught up with him, Hawke was at the front desk, seemingly having an argument with the receptionist.

‘But there must be some mistake,’ Hawke was saying. ‘I definitely booked two rooms. One in my name, and one in my friend Anders’s name.’

The receptionist had the decency to look apologetic. ‘I’m so sorry, sir,’ she answered in a melodious Welsh lilt that marked her as hailing from the same part of the country as Merrill. ‘The hotel is rather full tonight and tomorrow, and we really only have the one room.’

‘But – but I have the invoice here for two rooms,’ said Hawke. ‘I _paid_ for two rooms. Are you really telling me you only have one?’

‘I’m so sorry, sir. We do only have the one room; it looks like there has been a mix-up on our part. I can refund you your entire stay, if you like? You and your friend are welcome to stay in the room we have, if you are happy with that. But I think it’s only fair we refund you for what has clearly been a mix-up on our part.’

‘Thank you,’ Hawke said, although he still looked unhappy. ‘I will talk to my friend, and see what we decide. There aren’t really any other hotels we can stay at – this is quite a remote part of the country, and my brother is getting married tomorrow.’

After more apologies from the receptionist, Hawke turned to Anders, who was swallowing nervously – but fortunately, Hawke seemed too distracted by their current predicament to notice.

‘So,’ Hawke began. ‘We have a choice. Either we try to find another hotel to stay in for two nights, or we stay here and share a room. What do you think?’

Anders ran a hand through his blond hair; Hawke’s eyes followed the movement, and that made Anders even more anxious about replying. ‘I – I don’t know, Hawke. What do you want to do?’

‘I don’t really mind,’ Hawke said. ‘We can drive around trying to look for another hotel that’s not too far away. Of course, if you’re comfortable sharing a room with me, we can do that.’

Anders felt like he was going to faint on the spot.

‘I – Hawke,’ Anders began. ‘I – don’t mind if you don’t.’

Hawke stared at him, genuinely surprised, before he recovered himself. ‘I – OK, Anders,’ he eventually said. ‘Let me just sort things out with the receptionist, and then we can go up to – our room.’

Well, that was odd, Anders thought. He’d never seen Hawke stammer before.

When the receptionist had sorted out their refund and room keys, Hawke and Anders made their way to the room that had been allocated for them. It was spacious and comfortable and clean, and much to Anders’s dismay, only contained one bed.

A huge double bed.

It was official. What had started as an innocent favour for a friend was rapidly turning into a torturous two-days of self-control in the face of temptation.

 

***

 

They did not do anything that first night. Anders wasn’t sure if that made it better or worse. Even in the dark he felt Friday giving way to Saturday, and even in the dark he felt Hawke’s warm, delicious, enticing body all the way from the other side of the bed.

Anders had his back to Hawke, yet it was an effort to will his erection down and sleep. He wondered if Hawke was similarly lying awake; the man was far too quiet to _not_ be sleeping; but Anders didn’t want to say anything and risk waking him. Or worse, risk Hawke thinking Anders wasn’t asleep himself.

Hawke did not need to know Anders had lain awake all night, aching for him. Hawke did not need to know Anders had ached for him every night for the past three years.

The morning made things no better; one glance at Hawke across the breakfast table and it was clear that Hawke hadn’t slept either. ‘Tired?’ smiled Anders weakly at him as Hawke ordered his second shot of espresso in the space of fifteen minutes.

‘Couldn’t sleep,’ Hawke muttered, and he looked so vulnerable and lonely that Anders’s heart ached again. ‘The… temperature… was a bit hard to sleep in. Can I get you any tea or coffee?’

‘Thank you, Hawke. Tea sounds good.’

When breakfast was over, they went back to their room and dressed in silence; and it was strange to have the normally charming and chatty Hawke so quiet. Anders tried to sneak peeks at Hawke as he dressed, but every time he attempted to, Hawke jerked his head in the opposite direction, as if Anders had caught him looking at something he shouldn’t.

‘You look very smart, Anders,’ Hawke said, before they left, looking Anders up and down in such a way that Anders wanted to loosen his tie; it was suddenly very hot in here. Obviously the temperature problems they’d had during the night hadn’t resolved themselves; Anders would have to check the thermostat when they got back, he thought.

Outwardly, he said: ‘Thank you, Hawke.’ And then: ‘You look very smart, too.’

It was only partially true. Hawke didn’t just look smart, he looked like the most beautiful man Anders had ever laid eyes on, in a suit cut trim to his figure in a way that accentuated his fine form; and when Anders’s eyes had finished roving appreciatively over Hawke’s body, his gaze met Hawke’s – and Anders felt a jolt of electricity down his spine.

Hawke was looking at him, heat in his amber eyes, mouth slightly parted, breathing shallow, and he looked _hungry_ , so hungry, in a way that Anders couldn’t explain given the breakfast they’d had. And oh, Anders wanted, he _wanted_ …

Somewhere in the distance, a church bell chimed.

Anders licked his lips; Hawke did the same. When he spoke, his voice was low, full of need, honey and desire all in one. ‘We need to go,’ he said.

‘We do,’ Hawke agreed; and in that baritone was the promise of something dark and dangerous and restrained.

 

***

 

The wedding was lovely. Merrill looked beautiful in her white dress, pregnant and glowing; and Carver looked so proud he could burst. Between the rousing best man’s speech, and the brotherly teasing Hawke gave him (‘I’m not crying,’ Carver would frequently grumble, ‘I’ve just got something in my eye’), Anders loved seeing Hawke utterly in his element, sparkling wit and charm on display, even though in quieter moments Anders felt as though he could feel Hawke’s eyes on him, watching him, staring longingly at him across the room.

That was the problem with weddings, Anders thought. They always brought up emotions you never expected, intensified feelings you thought were long buried or not really there. And Garrett looking as handsome as he did wasn’t helping matters.

While watching Carver and Merrill have their first dance, Hawke’s deep voice in his ear made him jump; the feel of his warm breath against his skin made him close his eyes and shiver.

‘Shall we dance, Anders?’

Anders swallowed. ‘Of course.’

 _We’re just playing a part_ , Anders told himself, even as he knew it wasn’t true. Garrett’s cologne was in his nostrils, his body was tight against his, the warmth of his skin on Anders’s own as they whirled around the room, lost in the sweet music that was playing, as if there was no one else in the room but the two of them.

‘You look wonderful, Anders,’ Hawke murmured, pulling back so that he could look at him. His eyes were full of that same longing from earlier, and heat; but there was a sadness there too, a hesitancy that Anders realised he’d seen before, and it hurt him as he understood why it was there. ‘I couldn’t possibly do you justice for how wonderful you look tonight.’

 _Why hide anymore?_ asked the voice in Anders’s head. _Why keep denying it and pushing him away? Time to be honest_.

 _For three years I’ve ached for you. And here you are. I’m still terrified I’ll wake up_.

 _I can’t hold back any longer_.

Hawke was so close now, gazing at Anders as if Anders was the most beautiful man he’d ever seen, and there was nothing left to do but kiss him.

Hawke responded enthusiastically, hungrily, and Anders realised Hawke had wanted this as long as he had. He tasted so good, he felt so good, and it was everything, _everything_ Anders had yearned for, and even better, as Anders fisted the lapels of his suit and Hawke tightened his arms around him while they drank each other in…

‘About time too,’ Bethany snorted; and Hawke and Anders hastily parted, panting, absorbed in the blissful aftermath of their first kiss. ‘Took you two long enough. Merrill and I were beginning to despair of you two ever getting together, to be honest.’

‘Why yes,’ laughed Hawke, sounding like he hadn’t completely recovered, sounding as dizzy with happiness as Anders’s felt. ‘I suppose we are together, after all.’

 _Together_ , Anders’s dazed brain registered. _Hawke and I are together_ , he rejoiced to himself as Hawke leaned in to kiss him again.

They may not have slept on the night of the wedding either; but when things hotted up between them on that second night, neither Anders nor Hawke complained that the temperature didn’t let them sleep.

**Author's Note:**

> Come and say hello at [hollyand-writes.tumblr.com](http://hollyand-writes.tumblr.com)


End file.
